By John Stang
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission believes that Pacific Gas & Electric’s bankruptcy proceeding will not affect the utility’s plan to begin decommissioning its two Diablo Canyon nuclear power reactors in 2024 and 2025.
On March 16, the NRC responded in writing to PG&E’s Feb. 26 request for the federal agency’s opinion on whether the bankruptcy filing by the utility and its parent company would impact the safety of operations and future decommissioning of Diablo Canyon. That included whether there will be sufficient funding to maintain required safety levels.
The federal agency “does not anticipate that the Pacific Gas and Electric Company’s (PG&E) bankruptcy filing, including that of its parent company, will have any adverse safety impacts at” Diablo Canyon, NRC Region IV Administrator Scott Morris wrote. “Additionally, the NRC staff’s view is that sufficient funding remains available to maintain required safety levels at these facilities for operations and decommissioning. Based on recent inspection activities, the NRC has not identified any current concerns that PG&E’s financial challenges are adversely impacting the safe operations or decommissioning of the facilities.”
The March 16 letter addressed similar questions posed by both PG&E and the California Public Utilities Commission about the company’s finances related to the eventual decommissioning of the Diablo Canyon reactors.
Morris said there is no indication yet the bankruptcy will change the schedule to begin decommissioning.
“The NRC does not have information to suggest that the PG&E bankruptcy will delay or hinder the proposed decommissioning schedules. The NRC will continue to conduct inspections of PG&E’s facilities to monitor PG&E’s compliance with the NRC’s requirements for safe operation and decommissioning of its licensed facilities,” the letter said.
Morris emphasized that PG&E cannot yet take money from its decommissioning trust fund for any purpose other than decommissioning. The company has applied for an exemption to federal rules that would allow it to use some trust fund money to planning purposes for spent fuel management and site restoration activities. The NRC staff is reviewing that request, the letter said.
In 2016, PG&E announced plans to retire Diablo Canyon’s two pressurized water reactors as their Nuclear Regulatory Commission licenses expire in 2024 and 2025. The site is the last operating nuclear power plant in California.
On Jan. 29 of this year, PG&E filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of California, due to expected liabilities of $30 billion or more connected to wildfires in the state in 2017 and 2018. PG&E’s transition lines and other equipment have been blamed for many of the fires.
The Diablo Canyon decommissioning trust fund currently has $3.2 billion, with the utility seeking permission from the California Public Utilities Commission to increase rates to provide another $1.6 billion it says it will need to complete that work. The commission is expected to take 12 to 18 months to rule on that matter.
So far, the utility has publicly said the bankruptcy and reorganization will not affect its decommissioning plans. It expects to begin work immediately upon plant closure.
